Ice-making apparatus



. W.- D. WILLCOX. ICE MAKING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED AUG.8. I918.

1,327,414, Patented Jan. 6,1920.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I- w. 0. wmcox. ICE MAKING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED AU G.8, l9l8.

Patented Jan. 6, 1920.

3 SHEETSSHEET 2- W. D. WILLCOX.

ICE MAKING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED was. I918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- Envenior Patented J an. 6, 1920.

' entirely 7 around WALTER D; WILLCOX, OF or run DARBY, PENNSYLVANiAi ICE-MAKING nrrnas'rus.

Specification'of Letters Patent.

Application filed August-'8, 191s. Se'ria1'No. 248,97 7l- To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it knownthat I, WALTER D. VVILLCOX, a citizen of the United States, residing at Upper Darby, in the county of Delaware and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Ice-Making Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

One object of my invention is to provide means which will make cake ice in less time than has been required to make the same prior to my invention.

Another object is to so construct my invention that the ice produced thereby will be clear and solid.

A further object is to make said means of simple and durableconstruction and so that it can be quickly manufactured and assembled. Another'object is to reduce the cost of producing ice.

A still further object is to so make certain of the parts of my invention that the ice, after being frozen, can be quickly released or delivered therefrom without requiring diflicult or arduous manual work.

These objects, and other advantageous ends which will be described hereinafter, I

attain in the following manner, reference" being 'had to the accompanying drawmgs in which- Figure 1 is a diagrammatic side elevation of my invention,

Fig. 2 is a view of similar nature to Fig. 1, showing certain of the parts in central vertical section, and j Fig. 3 is a sectional view line 3'3 of'Fig. 2, and drawn on an enlarged scale.

Referring to thedrawings, a number of freezing cans 5 are arrangedin a row'and spaced apart. These cans are positioned within a tank' or shell 6, said tank or shell being of such size as to provide a space 7 the sides, rear, top, and

bottom of said freezing cans. The front 8 of the shell 6 is closed, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, but the closure does not cover the open ends 9 of the freezmg cans'5.

A covering of insulation 10 surrounds the shell 6 at the'sides, top, bottom, and rear. The freezing cans 5 are elongated and's'ub-' stantially rectangular in cross section. They are arranged, throughout their length, at anincline to the horizontal and theopentaken on the ends 9 ofthe cans permit the ice to slide out of the cans by gravity, after be more completely described.

YatentedJan. 6, 1920.- i

as will herein- The ends' 9 of the cans'5 are normally,

closed by a gatell. This gate, as shown 1n- A Windlass 13 is provided and has a rope or 3 cable 14: thereon which is attached at -15 to'- the gate 11 so that by turning the Windlass be moved tightly against the I Fig. 2, is supported and guided on rods 12.

the gate can open ends '9 of the cans, after which the gate'can on the rods 12.

Water inlet jet pipes '17 communicatewith the interior of each of the cans 5 at )positions adjacent the open the cans 5, at its rear 18 which is positioned substantially mid-'- way between the top and bottom of the can:

be secured by auxiliary clamps 16 ends -9 and each of end, has'a water outlet These water outlets '18 communicate with A an overflow receptacle 19 which is open at when the cans 5 are filledits top so that with water any additional water entering the through jet pipes 17 willflowover the top of the receptacle 19 and down intoanov'erfiow end of each of the freezing cans with an air vent 21 adja-'- trough 20.

The rear 5 is also provided cent the top or extreme upper corner of I the can. These vents 21 lead outwardly to" the atmospherethrough' the shell 6 so that no air can pocket itself within the cans 5.

Freezing means, such for exampleas am' monia' or freezing brine, is admitted into:

the space 7.

The means" for admitting the freezing medium intothe' space 7 and the waterinto the cans 5'will nowbe described.

' Taking for example that ammonia is used as freezing medium, acondenser 22 is provided and the condensed ammonia from the condenser 22 passes through ammonia from the pipe cans5 freezes the water A part of the ammonia from the pipe '24 passes through an expansion valve 2'7 intotank 28. This expansion-tank:

an expansion 28 is 'located'within a' pre cooler vat- 29 the pipe 23 into a'rec'eiving tank 39 and afterward through a pipe 24 into the space/'7. Expansion'valves- 25 and 26 are provided for'admi'ssion of the 24' i'nto the space 7, and the ammonia thus admitted around-the 5 within "the cans 5."

, -Any water flowing overflow receptacle l9 through the inlet jet pipes 17. Thus the water is pre-cooled to a certain extent before being admitted to the cans 5.

By the arrangement of the inlet jet plpes 17 and the overflow outlets 18 and vents 21, there will be a circulation of the water set up within the cans 5, as indicated by the arrows within the can illustrated in Fig. 2. This causes a rapid freezing of the water and at the same time the ice thus frozen will be clear.

over the top of the will fall into the trough 20 and this trough is connectedby a pump 30 and pipe 31 to return the water to the vat 29. The ammonia after passing into the pre-cooler expansion tank 28 can pass into the space 7 of the shell 6 by means of a pipe 32 which includes a relief valve 33. The ammonia from the space 7 can be returned to a compressor 34 through a suction pipe 35. The compressed ammonia from the compressor 34 is returned to the condenser 22 through a pipe 36. This pipe 36 also has a branch 37 .whichcommunicates with the space 7. This branch 37 is used to supply the space 7 with warm ammonia gas for thawing purposes. For example, after the ice has been frozen within the cans, the valve 38 is opened and the warm ammonia gas passes through the branch 37 into the space-7 and sufficiently heats the cans to loosen or free the ice so that it will readily slide out of the cans.

A pipe 40 leads from the space 7 adjacent the lower forward end of the shell 6 and communicates with the receiver 39 so that during the thawing operation any ammonia which is condensed Within the space 7 will flow downwardly through the pipe 40 into the receiver.

A valve 4E0? is provided in the pipe 40 and during the freezing operation the valves 4C0 and 38 are kept closed. The cans 5 are preferably made of sheet metal and have grooves 4:1 pressed in their outer surfaces. These grooves thus formed provide corresponding ribs'tl on the inner surfaces of the cans. These .ribs form grooves in the ice which marks the ice to enable the cakes to be accurately cut.v At the same time the grooves 41* provide expansion means for the cans to prevent the cans from bursting if, for example, the freezing operation is temporarily stopped and then started again. In other Words, the grooves ll provide corrugations of normally excess metal which permits a slight expansion of the tanks without bursting the tanks.

An oil extractor 4:2 is preferably provided to remove any oils which find their way into I the freezing medium.

After the ice has been produced in the een sufiicie'ntly warmed to loosen the cakes of ice the clamps 16 are loosened and the Windlass is permitted to rotate in a reverse direction. Thus the ice slides out of the cans 5 and is held in check by the gate 11 in view of the fact that the gate is connected to the windlass by the cable or rope 14. After the entire cakes of ice have slid from the cans the gate can be removed and the ice can slide to the store-house or any other place provided for it.

My invention reduces the cost of producing ice for the reason that I vsecure a direct expansion and can therefore operate with a much higher back pressure than heretofore used with brine and at the same time secure as low a temperature. Also, the higher back pressure produces a more dense cylinder pressure and a greater capacity and corresponding saving in fuel.

l/Vhile I have described my invention as taking a particular form, it will be understood that the various parts of my invention may be changed without departing from the spirit thereof, and hence I do not limit myself to the precise construction set forth, but consider that I am at liberty to make such changes and alterations as fairly come Within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A device of the character described including a shell; a can positioned within the shell and spaced therefrom to provide room for a freezing medium; a gate for closing one end of the can; means for continuously admitting water into said can at a position above the bottom of the can and adjacent one end thereof; and an overflow outlet for the water of said can adjacent the opposite end ofthe can, said admitted water and overflow efi'ecting the circulation of the water within the can, thereby causing new portions of water to be moved toward the inner surfaces of the can to quicken the freezing of the water; substantially as described. a

2. A device of the character described including a shell; a can positioned .within the shell and spaced therefrom to provide room for a freezing medium; a gate for closing one end of the can; means for admitting water into said can; an overflow outlet for the water of said can; an air vent for said can positioned at a level above said overflow outlet; and a receptacle for the overflow water, having its discharge portion at a level adjacent the extreme top of the inner portion of said can, substantially as described.

3. A device of the character described including a shell; a can positioned within the shell and extending at an incline to the horizontal, said can being spaced from the inner surface of said shell to provide room for a freezing medium; a gate for closing the lower end of the can; means for admitting water into said can; and an overflow outlet for the water of said can and located at the uppermost end of said can, substantially as described.

4. A device of the character described inclukling a shell; a can positioned within the shell and extending at an incline to the horizontal, said can being spaced from the inner surface of said shell to provide room for a freezing medium; a gate for closing the lower end of the can; means for admittin water into said can; an overflow outlet For the water of said can and located at the uppermost end of said can; an air vent for said can positioned at a level above said overflow outlet; and a receptacle for the overflow water, having its discharge portion at a level adjacent the extreme top of the inner portion of said can, substantially as described.

5. A device of the character described including a shell; a can positioned within the shell and extending at an incline to the horizontal, said can being spaced from the inner surface of said shell to provide room for a freezing medium; a gate for closing the lower end of the can; means for admitting water into said can; an overflow outlet for the water of said can and located at the uppermost end of said can; an air vent for said can positioned at a level above said overflow outlet; a receptacle for the overflow water, having its discharge portion at a level adjacent the extreme top of the inner portion of said can; and means for receiving the overflow water whereby it can be returned to said water inlet means to the can, substantially as described.

6. A device of the character described including a shell; a can positioned within the shell and extending at an incline to the horizontal; a gate for closing the lower open end of said can said gate being opened and movable due to the weight of the ice frozen within said can; and means for retarding the opening movement of said gate l for holding the ice in check during its slidin movement, substantially as described.

A device of the character described including a shell; a can positioned within the shell and extending at an incline to the horizontal; a gate for closing the lower open end of said can, said gate being opened and movable due to the weight of the ice frozen within said can; and guiding rods for said gate, substantially as described' 8. A device of the character described including a shell; a can positioned within the shell and extending at an incline to the horizontal; a gate for closing the lower open end of said can, said gate being opened and movable due to the weight of the ice frozen within said can and means for: clamping said gate in position, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WALTER D. WILLCOX.

Witnesses:

LOUISE H. KAIN, KATHRYN L. RAPP. 

